Kitchen Slicer: More Useful Than You Might Think

A kitchen slicer is one item I own that I consider indispensable. It’s not that I use it all that often; it’s more that nothing else I own quite replaces it. Most people think of a kitchen slicer as something useful only for slicing deli meat, but having one, I’ve found myself using it for so many things. I highly recommend one for people looking to save a bit of money in the kitchen.

My Kitchen Slicer – onions ready to slice for French Onion Soup

I don’t use mine every day, so I chose an inexpensive folding model rather than a heavy-duty commercial machine. That’s a good example of matching a purchase to your needs. If you’ll use a slicer every week, investing in a premium model may make sense. If you’ll only pull it out occasionally, an affordable model may give you all the value you need. And my fold-up model stores away easily.

I don’t bother pulling out the slicer for a single onion or a couple of slices of meat. When I’m working with larger quantities, though, it’s a tremendous time-saver, and over the years it has saved me a surprising amount of money on foods many people normally buy already sliced or prepared.

A lot of the value of a kitchen slicer comes from being able to buy food in a larger, less-processed form (and more inexpensive form) and do the value-added work yourself.

Why a Kitchen Slicer?

I have a good knife, a mandoline, and a food processor. A kitchen slicer still does something – and does it easily – that none of them does quite as well.

It very quickly transforms food into beautiful, even slices, as thick or thin as I’d like. It’s especially useful for larger batches of food.

I use mine for transforming leftovers, making beautiful deli trays or charcuterie boards, and prepping everything from vegetables and bread to cooked and raw meats. And because I tend to buy foods at a good price and in larger quantities, the slicer often becomes part of the process of turning those purchases into foods ready to use now or freeze for later.

Leftover Ham is always great, but sliced with a kitchen slicer becomes a little more special.

Deli Meat

This may be the obvious use, but it’s a good one.

A kitchen slicer is wonderful for slicing leftover roast beef, chicken breast, turkey, ham, or pork loin paper-thin for sandwiches. Since I’ve generally bought the original meat on sale, I’m essentially making my own deli meat for a fraction of the price.

You might want to see my posts on Leftover Turkey and Leftover Ham for more ideas on putting those leftovers to work.

It’s also hard to beat for beautifully slicing brisket, including the corned beef from my Corned Beef & Cabbage. Slice it a little thinner, and it’s ready for Reubens.

Larger logs of deli meat, such as salami, are another natural fit.

Deli Trays & Charcuterie

A slicer makes quick work of meats and cheeses for deli trays and charcuterie boards. Besides saving time, the uniform slices give everything a polished, professional look.

If you’re making a larger tray for a party, this is one of those jobs where pulling out the slicer really pays off.

Cheese

Sliced cheese costs more than block cheese in my area, so slicing my own is another small way the slicer saves money.

Firm cheeses such as Cheddar, Swiss, Edam, and Gouda work particularly well. As you move toward very thin slices or softer cheeses, the limitations of a home slicer begin to show, but a couple of test slices and you’ll find the sweet spot.

I mainly use mine for cheese when I want consistency – for platters, sandwiches, or evenly portioned blocks. With larger pieces, the extra control makes the job faster and cleaner.

4 pounds of Onions for French Onion Soup sliced in about three to four minutes.

Vegetables

This is where a kitchen slicer becomes much more interesting than simply a way to make deli meat.

Iceberg Lettuce: If you’re looking for those fluffy piles of finely shredded iceberg you find on a good deli sandwich, the slicer will take care of that in seconds.

Tomatoes: When I’m preparing sandwiches or a condiment tray for a party or get-together, a slicer gives me beautiful, uniform tomato slices.

Cabbage: I sometimes quarter cabbage and cut it by hand or use the food processor, but a slicer makes quick work of larger quantities. It shreds cabbage beautifully for slaw and makes wonderfully even cabbage steaks.

If you make sauerkraut, it’s particularly helpful when you’re faced with slicing several heads of cabbage.

Onions: For a large quantity of onions, a kitchen slicer can’t be beat.

• I use mine for the mountain of onions needed for French Onion Soup. Since slicing from pole to pole gives the best results for the soup, doing the job properly by hand takes forever – and usually involves a few tears. My food processor doesn’t do the job particularly well, either.
• A slicer is also great for quickly and evenly cutting onions for onion rings, like my French’s Copycat Onion Rings or Vidalia Beer Battered Onion Rings.
• And if you’re making a large batch of Pickled Onions, that’s another time when it may be worth pulling out the slicer.

Potatoes & Sweet Potatoes: Any time both appearance and even cooking matter, a slicer will take care of a pile of potatoes or sweet potatoes in no time.

• Gratins & Scalloped Potatoes: It’s perfect for gratins and scalloped potatoes, where slices of uniform thickness cook more evenly and make a prettier finished dish.
• Potato Chips & Fries: I use the slicer for potato chips and to cut potatoes or sweet potatoes into even planks for fries. Stack the planks and finish cutting them into fries by hand.
• Hash Browns: Evenly sized potatoes cook more evenly. Slice potatoes into uniform planks first, then finish cutting them by hand. This is especially handy when I’m making larger batches to freeze.

Citrus Fruit:

• I’ve even used my kitchen slicer to cut oranges and lemons into very thin, uniform slices for marmalade and for my Beautiful Dried Oranges.
• It’s another job where consistent thickness isn’t just about appearance – it helps everything cook or dry at about the same rate.

A kitchen slicer makes short work of cutting homemade bread.

Bread

The slicer powers through bread in no time and gives beautiful, uniform slices. A serrated blade handles even crusty loaves well.

I’ve sliced sourdough, my Easy Overnight Bread, Irish Soda Bread, and regular sandwich loaves. It’s especially handy when you’ve baked a whole loaf and want to portion or freeze it.

Raw Meat

This may be one of the biggest money-saving uses of my slicer.

I use it for slicing beef for Italian beef sandwiches and Philly cheesesteaks, and for any recipe calling for very thin or shaved beef, including my Garlic Banh Mi, Asian Beef Noodle Soup, and Gyudon.

It’s also wonderful for thinly slicing chicken, beef, or pork for stir-fries.

Because I often buy sale-priced proteins in larger quantities, it can be worthwhile to pull out the slicer once, prep everything at the same time, portion it, and put it into the freezer ready for future meals.

I also use it to avoid paying higher prices for specially cut meats. I can slice meat for Swiss Steak, German Rouladen, Chicken Fried Steak, and Pork Tenderloin Sandwiches myself and avoid paying for cube steak.

While I sometimes buy larger cuts like sales-priced roasts and have the butcher slice them into steaks, sometimes the butcher isn’t available. Depending on the roast, I know I can usually do the job at home.

Bacon

If you smoke or cure your own bacon, a kitchen slicer is nearly indispensable. It powers through pork belly and lets you choose exactly how thick or thin you’d like your bacon.

Dehydrating Foods

I’d like to thank Wendy J. for suggesting this one!

A slicer is ideal for foods you’re planning to dehydrate because consistent thickness means the pieces should dry at roughly the same rate. Think fruits, vegetables, and jerky.

That saves more than prep time—it saves you from constantly sorting through a dehydrator and removing thinner pieces while thicker ones continue to dry.

Pickling & Preserving

Uniform slices can be important when preserving foods, too. Cucumbers, onions, radishes, peppers, and other vegetables will pickle or marinate more evenly when they’re cut to approximately the same thickness.

And once again, it’s the quantity that makes the slicer worthwhile. I wouldn’t pull mine out for a cucumber. Faced with a bushel of produce, that’s another story.

Is a Kitchen Slicer Worth It?

For everyone? Maybe not.

But that’s true of almost any specialized kitchen equipment.

For me, the value of a kitchen slicer isn’t measured by how many times a week I use it. It’s measured by what happens when I do need it. It handles larger quantities quickly, provides consistent results, helps me make better use of foods I’ve bought on sale, and allows me to do at home a number of things I’d otherwise pay someone else (the grocery store or producers) to do, which saves me money.

And that’s why, even though mine spends a fair amount of time folded up and tucked away, it has earned its place in my kitchen.

This article on Electric Pressure Cookers is a part of my series on Building a Frugal Kitchen: What Equipment is Needed